KYIV, Ukraine — Memorial stones and plaques are common at railway stations around the world, commemorating rail history, anniversaries, or rail employees who died in service. On Feb. 24, at the central station in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, a new memorial was unveiled to the 353 Ukrainian railway workers who had been killed during the first […]
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Removal of hazardous waste from the site of a Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine is slated to resume today (Monday, Feb. 27), after being paused Saturday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over concerns regarding the moves by residents, as well as those in locations that were receiving the waste. […]
VOLGA, W.Va. — Allegheny Metallurgical Coal, a new company to be served by both CSX Transportation and Appalachian & Ohio, moved its first train of high-grade metallurgical coal earlier this month. The company, located along U.S. Route 119 between Buckhannon, in Upshur County, and Philippi, in Barbour County, moved the first train Feb. 8. Its […]
WASHINGTON — A lack of markers warning of a close-clearance situation was the probable cause of a fatal accident involving a BNSF Railway conductor in La Mirada, Calif., on March 3, 2021, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a final accident report issued late last week. The conductor was killed during a shoving move […]
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia legislature on Saturday advanced a bill that would allow the state’s Public Service Commission, its regulatory agency for utilities, to investigate and fine Class I railroads for safety and operational violations. On an 89-3 vote, the legislature’s House of Delegates passed HB 3059, sending it to the state Senate. […]
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority on Friday introduced an “online safety dashboard,” allowing the public to track the agency’s progress in responding to Federal Transit Administration safety directives, as well as providing information on speed restrictions across the MBTA’s rail transit system. The dashboard, available here, shows that as of Feb. 12, the […]
SALT LAKE CITY — The company planning to build Uinta Basin Railway will seek $1.9 billion in private activity bonds to help finance construction of the 88-mile railroad in Utah, with the help of the government agency supporting the project, the Colorado Sun news site reports. Those funds would cover 70% of the cost of […]
OMAHA, Neb. — A hedge fund, arguing that Union Pacific ranks dead last in every important operating metric, has asked the railroad’s board of directors to replace current CEO Lance Fritz with former Chief Operating Officer Jim Vena. Soroban Capital, which has a $1.6 billion stake in UP and ranks among its top 10 investors, […]
DES LACS, N.D. — BNSF’s main line across North Dakota was fully reopened Saturday evening after a Friday morning derailment, the railroad says in a customer advisory. One track of the main line near Des Lacs, about 14 miles west of Minot, N.D., reopened on Saturday at 5:25 a.m. CST; the second track reopened at […]
PHILADELPHIA — The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has awarded a $125 million contract for the final design phase of the King of Prussia Rail project. SEPTA awarded the contract to HNTB Corp. at its Feb. 23 board meeting. The project will add a 4-mile, five-station spur to the Norristown High Speed Line near its northern […]
OMAHA, Neb. — BNSF Railway’s pre-tax earnings declined 1.9% in 2022 due to a combination of lower volume and higher costs, the railroad’s parent company, Berkshire Hathaway, reported on Saturday. BNSF’s revenue was up 11.9% for the year, to $25.2 billion, reflecting an 18.9% increase in average revenue per car/unit, including the impact from higher […]
WASHINGTON — In their latest bid to delay the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, four members of the Illinois congressional delegation have cited the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment as a reason the Surface Transportation Board should subject the merger to further review. In a letter to STB Chairman Martin J. Oberman dated Thursday, Feb. 23, […]
